With production lines running flat out and orders already booked through the end of May, and with the 2026 FIFA World Cup approaching, Chen Shaomei has seen rising demand and growing enthusiasm from overseas buyers in Yiwu, East China's Zhejiang Province.

"More than 90 percent of our business is export-oriented, mainly to Africa, South America and Europe, with some shipments also going to the US," Chen, manager of Minsa Sports in the Yiwu International Trade Market, told the Global Times on Wednesday. "From July to December last year, our export orders rose by 20 to 30 percent compared with previous years. Orders surged again around February, and many of the orders we took last year are still being fulfilled."

With less than two months to go before the tournament kicks off on June 11 across Canada, Mexico, and the US, World Cup-related demand is rippling through Yiwu, long known as the world's supermarket.

In this East China's trading hub, the global football fever has translated into a fresh wave of export orders, highlighting not only the pull of a major global sporting event, but also the resilience and responsiveness of China's manufacturing sector, Chinese industry observers noted.

July is usually the start of the off-season for exporters, yet for Chen's company, orders began rising from that month last year and have stayed strong ever since. "The biggest single order from one client exceeded 100,000 units,"Chen said.

A buyer from Saudi Arabia told reporters that he is a big fan of Argentina's national team, visits Yiwu once a month, and placed an order for 10,000 backpacks on this trip, the Economic Daily reported on Wednesday.

Luo Tianle, head of another sports goods exporter in Yiwu, said that his business previously benefited during last World Cup from authorized Argentina team merchandise, which at one point sold out, according to the Economic Daily.

The early rush is being firmly underpinned by Yiwu's manufacturing strength.

In Yiwu, merchants have been preparing well ahead of the event, relying on complete supply chains, fast production cycles and growing original design capabilities to turn overseas demand into concrete orders, a representative of Chinagoods, the official website and data release platform of the Yiwu International Trade Market, told the Global Times in a statement on Wednesday.

Luo began preparing for the 2026 tournament two to three years in advance, ramping up product development while traveling overseas to negotiate licensing cooperation, according to the Economic Daily.

Yiwu's edge lies not only in scale, but also in speed.

Backed by a mature industrial chain and strong innovation capacity, Luo's team can launch 20 to 30 new products a week, according to the Economic Daily.

The Global Times learned that some Yiwu merchants have secured official licenses for World Cup-related merchandise, including jerseys and other peripheral products.

Yiwu-based sports goods exporter FanTown recently signed a formal agreement with leading domestic sports intellectual property company All Star Partner, securing full-category official licenses for several popular national teams - including Argentina, Portugal, England, and France - as well as several clubs, laying a solid foundation for the continued development of new products, according to Chinagoods' representative.

FanTown can design more than 20 new items a week, and once approved, some items can go into production and be turned into finished goods within a day, according to the Chinagoods' representative.

The steady improvement in the quality and reputation of Chinese products has been underpinned by advances in technology and manufacturing upgrades, as well as broad gains in production equipment, management, research and design capacity, and talent development, Bian Yongzu, an executive deputy editor-in-chief of Modernization of Management magazine, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

Chinese manufacturing now stands out not only for product performance and quality, but also for its growing integration of design concepts and cultural value, allowing it to better meet consumer demand for both quality and added value, Bian said .

Bian also said that global demand is increasingly shifting toward more personalized, small-batch, and fast-iterating products, making flexible manufacturing systems more important than ever. In today's market, companies need to understand demand quickly, adjust designs promptly and deliver products in a short time frame - an area where Chinese manufacturing has built a strong competitive edge.

He noted that as global consumer demand continues to upgrade, China's strengths in innovation speed, customization and rapid delivery will become even more pronounced, further reinforcing the country's position in global supply chains.

Customs data cited by Chinese media outlets showed that Yiwu's exports of sports goods and equipment reached 2.34 billion yuan ($320 million) in the first two months of 2026, up 38.5 percent year-on-year, according to China Media Group.